Giants vs. Packers: How they match up

GIANTS RUN DEFENSE vs. PACKERS RUN OFFENSE

The Packers don't run very often, but it's mostly because they don't have to. Their passing game is so efficient that they've thrown it 157 times more than they've run it. James Starks and Ryan Grant have split the carries almost equally -- 133 and 134, respectively -- but have only three rushing TDs between them. Starks, slowed by a severe ankle sprain, has only 13 carries in three games since Week 11. The Packers are getting their original starting offensive line back on the field for the first time since September, but the question is whether that will come with some chemistry adjustments. The Giants have been playing the run well after some early-season headaches. In the last two games, they allowed 49 and 64 rushing yards, including limiting Atlanta's Michael Turner to 41 yards on 15 carries. More importantly, they have allowed only one run of more than 20 yards since the Nov. 28 loss to the Saints. The Giants held the Packers to 89 yards on 28 carries Dec. 4, but 32 yards were by a scrambling Aaron Rodgers.

EDGE: GIANTS

GIANTS PASS DEFENSE vs.PACKERS PASS OFFENSE

It's probably the most improved aspect of the Giants in the last month and one of the main reasons why they are even playing in this game. But will there be enough positive changes to keep up with one of the most prolific, balanced passing attacks in the NFL? The Packers have 10 players with 10 or more receptions, three with 50 or more, and Rodgers has completed 68.3 percent of his passes. The corners have to be physical with the receivers and disrupt Rodgers' uncanny timing, and if the pass rush can hurry Rodgers without blitzing and keep more bodies back in the secondary, it will help. Besides wide receivers Jordy Nelson and Greg Jennings, they also have tight end Jermichael Finley, who has caught eight TDs. The Giants gave up big plays in their last meeting with the Packers, some brain-lock coverages that allowed easy points. If they can eliminate those, they have a chance to win. The Packers may have too many diverse weapons for the Giants to handle.

EDGE: PACKERS

GIANTS RUN OFFENSE vs. PACKERS RUN DEFENSE

The Giants were last in the NFL in rushing yards and yards per carry in the regular season, but against the Falcons the running game exploded for 172 yards. That was 50 more than they had in any game, and they had just as many runs of 20 or more yards (2) in that game as they had all season. Even Eli Manning flashed some fleet feet with a 14-yard scramble that no one on the Giants wants to see him make a habit of. Brandon Jacobs has been running well, and he had 59 yards on only eight carries in the Dec. 4 meeting. And that was with a patchwork line that lost center David Baas about two hours before kickoff and had Stacy Andrews hospitalized the night before. Of course, the Packers were missing their two inside linebackers in that game, and A.J. Hawk and leading tackler Desmond Bishop (142) are expected to play Sunday. B.J. Raji also can dominate in the middle, although he's been playing more of an end in the 3-4 scheme this season.

EDGE: GIANTS

GIANTS PASS OFFENSE vs. PACKERS PASS DEFENSE

The Giants lead the league in passing plays of more than 40 yards (10). The Packers are second in giving up passing plays of 20 or more yards with 71. I'll spare you the drama and tell you the edge will go to the Giants. Beyond the numbers, the Giants are also getting healthy. Mario Manningham had a big game against the Falcons after being the forgotten man for a few weeks while struggling through a knee injury. Hakeem Nicks had two touchdowns against the Falcons. Victor Cruz had some drops in his first playoff game, but he's due for a salsa dance. They even have Jake Ballard coming back into shape and remember, this is the defense that couldn't stop Travis Beckum in December. The one thing the Packers defense does do is gamble and make interceptions. Clay Matthews returned an Eli Manning pick for a touchdown last time in a three-point game, so do the math. If Manning can get the ball into the hands of his own guys, the Giants should be able to put up robust numbers.

EDGE: GIANTS

SPECIAL TEAMS

Tom Coughlin likes to say that every week the Giants have to prepare for a dynamic, playmaking punt or kickoff returner. The league, it seems, is full of those players. There just aren't any on the Giants. Although they've tried Aaron Ross and Jerrel Jernigan and Victor Cruz and now Will Blackmon at the job, they've been unable to get much of anything from their punt return game this season (or for several seasons, come to think of it). The Giants manage only 6.1 yards per return and haven't had one longer than 18 all season. The Packers, on the other hand, have Randall Cobb, with an 80-yard TD return on a punt and a 108-yard touchdown on a kickoff. Cobb averages 11.3 yards per return, which is like getting an extra first down every time he touches the ball. The Giants do a good job of containing returners and Steve Weatherford is having a very strong first season with the team, but the lack of a spark by the Giants when they get the ball is troubling. Watch out for a blocked punt by a Giant this week. They've come close in each of the last three games.

EDGE: PACKERS

KICKING GAME

Two of the last three meetings between these teams have come down to a game-winning field goal. Lawrence Tynes made his 47-yarder in overtime of the NFC title game in January 2008. Mason Crosby hit a 31-yarder with no time remaining for the Packers a month ago. Both have experience in the cold, although it's not expected to be that frigid on Sunday. Tynes missed his last kick, a 32-yard attempt that went wide right against the Falcons, but he's nailed 20 of 25 this season, with two of the five misses blocked and one a 61-yarder in desperation. Crosby has been good on 24 of 28, but one of those misses was on a 29-yarder that hit an upright (Tynes has been perfect inside 30 yards). And like Tynes, Crosby comes into this game off a miss, a 47-yarder in Week 17 against the Lions.

EDGE: GIANTS

INTANGIBLES

It's impossible to predict how the Packers will react to the death of the 21-year-old son of offensive coordinator Joe Philbin. The funeral is Friday, and Philbin is not expected to be with the team this week. It could inspire the Packers to play for their coach and try to honor him with a win, or it could leave them emotionally drained by the time they kick off Sunday. The Giants are riding high after three straight must-win games, and believe they are a Super Bowl team even if they didn't have the better regular season. They are, as Antrel Rolle likes to say, swagged out. Jason Pierre-Paul may disagree, but it's too close to call.

EDGE: TOSSUP

COACHING

Tom Coughlin and Mike McCarthy have won Super Bowls with mediocre regular-season teams that got hot at the right time, and both continued that run into the next season and gained the top seed in the playoffs. Coughlin has the Giants' attention, Perry Fewell is connecting with the players, and Kevin Gilbride is taking chances in the passing game while remaining relatively balanced in recent weeks. McCarthy is the play-caller behind the Packers' offensive success, and it's that offense that brought them here. The Packers are also the least penalized team in the NFL. Coughlin may be holding this battered team together, but you don't go 15-1 without a strong captain at the wheel.

EDGE: PACKERS